The Unknown
by DBZfan4
Summary: Wesley experiences something unexpected and to make matters worse Q makes an unexpected arrival to observe how they will handle it. Join him and the crew as they try to figure out what's happening. The Wesley Chronicles p1
1. Chapter 1

The Unknown

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Star Trek: The Next Generation

"Mr. Crusher take us out of orbit."

"Heading sir?"

"Starbase 45, warp six."

"Course laid in."

"Engage."

That's what he might have heard if he was on the bridge, but it was not yet his shift. At the moment he didn't have any classes or homework. Something was bothering him and he didn't know what. He decided it was about time he visited the holodeck again. Hopefully he could get his mind off whatever it was. Once he got there he couldn't decide what program to run.

"Computer list the most commonly used programs."

He thought this would help him decide. He listened for a while until …

"Computer run last program listed."

'Complete enter when ready.' the computer complied.

He entered the holodeck hoping this would clear his mind, but after a while that same feeling came back. A feeling of well he didn't exactly know how to describe it but something just felt odd. Soon he found that he had left the holodeck and was in the turbo- lift. He didn't even remember walking to it, much less where it was headed.

"Computer destination?"

'Ten forward' it replied it the usual feminine voice.

"Strange I don't remember wanting to go there." he said confusedly.

'Repeat request.' it said

"Nothing." he responded realizing he had said it aloud.

Well he might as well go to ten forward he didn't have anything else to do. He walked in noticing that it wasn't as crowded as he was used to. He walked across the room and sat at the far corner near one of the viewing ports. He sat there just staring off into nothing.

"Can I get you something?" a familiar voice asked.

"What?"

"I asked if you wanted anything." the voice said.

"Oh, I'm sorry Guinan. I didn't hear you. No, nothing."

"That's perfectly alright, but the question is what's bothering you?" she asked intuitively.

"It's nothing."

"Well that sure is a whole lot of nothing you're carrying around."

"It's just that …"

"It's just that what"

"Well, I really don't know what's bothering me."

"Maybe you should talk about it?" she suggested.

"But, I don't know what to talk about."

"Well, you could just start talking and maybe you'll find out."

"Let's see where to begin? I was in my quarters sitting there and thinking about the bridge when I felt uneasy for some reason. So I decided to go to the holodeck to take my mind off it. I soon started feeling uneasy again and then found myself on the turbo lift on my way to here. And then I came and sat down here and you came." he said re-accounting his story to her.

"Well it sounds to me like you are dealing with something unconsciously and your brain is trying to work it out into your conscious."

"So you're saying it's a suppressed emotion that I need to work out."

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying ."

"So how do I do that?"

"See Counselor Troi she can help you."

"I'm sure she is far to busy with all her appointments that she won't have time to listen to me talk about a problem. I'm not even sure it is a problem."

"Nonsense this isn't something that you can't just explain away. This could be a serious problem, besides even if its not it will get your mind off it to talk about it."

"Well I don't know."

"If you don't go to her I'll tell her and she'll come to you"

"Okay, I get it I'll talk to her." he said getting up from the table.

"And Wes, if you don't make it to her quarters, I'll know." she said threateningly.

He promptly left after that remark. He then headed to the turbolift double time.

"I like her but sometimes she can be so pushy." he muttered to himself.

He soon found himself standing in front of Counselor Troi's quarters wondering what he would say when he did talk to her. Suddenly the doors to her quarters opened and a woman walked out while thanking the counselor.

"Wesley is there something you wanted?" she asked

"Well if you have time Guinan told me to come."

"Yes I have time come in." she said kindly.

"I'm not sure what my problem is."

"Well that's what I'm here for."

"It's just that something has been bothering me and I don't know what."

"Tell me when you started to feel this."

"When I was thinking about the bridge I started to get a feeling but I didn't know what it was. I decided that a trip to the holodeck to get my mind off of it but that didn't work. I guess at some point I decided to go to ten forward, but I don't remember getting in the turbo lift. When I went in and sat down Guinan came and talked to me and then told me to come to you."

"So it all started when you thought of the bridge."

"I guess so."

"Maybe thinking about your recent experiences have triggered a repressed emotion."

"That's what Guinan said but I don't know what it could be." he said a little confused.

"Well there is something I can do to find out what's bothering you."

"What is it?" he asked curiously

"Its hypnotism."

"Well I guess it's worth a shot." he said hesitantly

"Okay, then I need you to come over here and sit down." she said gesturing to a chair typical of twentieth century psychiatrist's offices. " Now I'm going to allow your subconscious to speak, by injecting you with this." she said reaching for a hypo spray.

"Now tell me about the bridge, tell me what's bothering you."

"I'm sitting at the conn, when something hits me I shrug it off."

"What is it you feel?"

"I feel trapped, I'm scared help me." but this wasn't Wesley's voice, it was a multitude of voices.

She cried out in pain as she felt the emotions poring from him. She quickly struggled to get the hypo that would bring him out of it. When she finally reached it and applied it, it had no effect.

"Troi to sick bay. Doctor I need your assistance in my quarters. It's Wes…" she said unable to finish she was cut off by,

"I'm on my way." she said with a hint of worry in her voice

AN: Well long time no see, I haven't submitted a story forever. Don't you just love cliff hangers? Well I hope you like it so far. Please submit a review and tell me how I'm doing.


	2. Chapter 2

The Unknown

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Star Trek: The Next Generation

"I've managed to sedate him." Dr. Crusher said with a sigh of relief. "He should be fine."

"Do you know what happened, Beverly?" Captain Picard said with a hint of worry in his voice.

"No, I don't have any clue, but maybe Deanna can tell you."

"I'll talk to her is she in your office?"

"Yes, but Jean-Luc, she is still a little shaken up about this."

"Beverly, how do you feel?"

"I'm okay, it was a little frightening but I'm none the worse for wear."

"Keep up the good work doctor, but don't work yourself to hard" he said as he walked toward her office.

"Deanna" he said as he walked in.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm all right, it's just that what happened was a little disturbing." she said trying to suppress the shock in her voice.

"Can you tell me what happened?"

"Well sir, I was trying to figure out what was causing Wesley to feel uneasy." she said with a slight shake in her voice. "I put him into a hypnosis induced sleep with a hypo. I asked some questions about when he first felt something. Once I asked him how he felt at that moment …" she paused

"What happened then" he said urging her to continue.

"I heard the voices of people." she said shuddering at the memory.

"What did they say counselor?" he said keeping his voice even.

"They said they felt trapped and scared, then they asked for help" she said trying to suppress the emotions. "I felt them captain, their could have been dozens even hundreds." she said in a truly worried voice.

"Hundreds?" the captain said in surprise.

"I don't understand it either, sir."

"Well when he wakes up I would like to ask him some questions."

"I doubt it will help all that much. He had no recollection of it until his subconscious was in control of his thought process."

"Well I must try anyway."

"I understand sir."

"Please notify me the moment he regains consciousness." he said as he started to leave.

He headed through sickbay doors. Once in the hallway he paused for a moment to ponder what could have caused this. His thoughts were interrupted by

"Captain."

"Oh, Will, did you need something?"

"I was just about to ask you the same question."

"No, I was just thinking."

"How is he?" he asked in a concerned voice.

"He's been sedated and Beverly says he'll be fine."

"How's she handling it?"

"She seems to be handling it well, but I'm more concerned about Deanna."

"Is she okay?" he asked trying to control the concern in his voice.

"She's alright, just very shaken and disturbed over it."

"I'm going to talk with her. I mean if that's okay with you sir."

"By all means Will. The bridge will be safe without you for awhile, besides I think it would calm her a bit."

"Thanks sir." he said as he walked into sickbay.

Once Riker had left, the captain headed for the turbo lift. While walking through the halls young ensigns (who had not been aboard long) would salute him. 'They are so young and naive' he thought. 'But then again so was I at that age' he quickly reminded himself. The older more experienced officers would nod their head in acknowledgment of him. They had already learned that it was not necessary to always salute him and trip over themselves when he passed. He walked into the turbo lift and said "Bridge" as he took in the interior. He was thankful that it was empty. If anything he didn't need right now was some officer trying to make small talk with him. Finally he arrived and stepped off the lift. One thing he noticed is that whenever he came on to the bridge all conversations suddenly stopped and every body suddenly started pressing buttons and making themselves busy. Data vacated the captain's seat and returned to ops. He took his seat. Now all he could do was wait for news.

* * *

As the first officer entered sickbay it was easy for him to see that something was bothering her. He slowly made his way to her side and just stood beside her until she finally turned toward him. She didn't say anything but the look in her eyes told him she was scared. Sensing her fear made him reach out for her instinctively and she returned the embrace. 

"I was so scared, Will" her voice trembled.

"It's okay, nothing is going to happen to him." he said reassuringly

"But something took over him, I just don't understand how it happened."

"I'm sure we'll figure it out, and then everything will be back to normal."

"But what if its real and there are people in trouble, how can we help them if we don't even know where they are?"

"Don't worry if this is real we'll find a way to help them and Wes."

"I hope so"

* * *

"He doesn't remember any of it captain." Troi said. 

"That's what disturbs me even more." said Picard.

"In his mind it's as if it never happened to him."

"Well just to be on the safe side I want him monitored for a while."

"Yes, of course. I'll have Beverly keep him in sickbay for a while longer."

"I think that would be the best course of action. Make it so."

With that said he walked out of sickbay. His mind was riddled with questions as he made his way back to the bridge. Like "What could this mean." or "Why did this happen.". He tried to reason it out but no matter how hard he tried he could not come up with a logical answer to it. When he came on the bridge Data vacated the captain's seat.

"That won't be necessary. I'll be in my ready room." he said as he headed for it. He went in and sat down, only to stand up again. "Tea, Earl Gray, hot" he said. This will help me relax a little he thought. "Why did this happen and why now." he said aloud.

"It's amazing how simple minded you humans are." said the voice of Q followed by a flash of light.

AN: I did it again cliffhanger. I know you want to know how Q fits into all of this, but you're gonna have to wait a while longer to find out. I hope you're enjoying my story so far.


	3. Chapter 3

The Unknown

Chapter 3

"Q, what's your part in this." the captain said in an irritated voice.

"Oh, really Jean-Luc. Is that any way to greet a visitor." he said in his usual way.

"You are no mere visitor. Tell me what you have to do with this."

"I am merely here to observe you."

"I find that hard to believe."

"Well believe it."

"Your telling me you don't know what's going on."

"Oh, I know what's going on. I'm here to observe how your going to figure it out."

"Just what we need." the captain said sarcastically.

"I'll be watching you." he said as he disappeared.

* * *

The door to her quarters chimed. She reluctantly got out of bed and said "enter" she was greeted by a worried mother.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you, but I couldn't sleep."

"No, it's okay I was just laying down."

"Oh I'm sorry"

"Don't worry about it, just tell me what's bothering you."

"Well, I just can't stop worrying about Wesley, Do you think he will be okay."

"I know it's hard, but sometimes you just need to let things work themselves out. At this point there's nothing we can do, so worrying about it won't help much. I suggest you take a mild sedative so you can get some sleep and you come back tommorow for an appointment."

"Okay, I will, thanks." she said as she turned to walk out.

Now it was time for some much needed sleep.

* * *

"So your telling me he's observing us." asked Will Riker in disbelief.

"I'm afraid so number one." said the captain.

"Great just what we need another "trial" of humanity."

"I agree , but there's nothing we can do about it. This is a problem we have no control over."

"Oh, Jean-Luc, is that all I am to you a problem? And to think that I grown so fond of you." said the mysterious super being as he appeared in a flash of light.

"What's your part in this Q?" asked Riker.

"As I told your captain, I'm just here to observe."

"I find that hard to believe." Riker said skeptically.

"You would." he retorted. "Honestly, I have nothing to do with this."

"Since when are you honest Q?"

"I've been known to be at times."

"Alright you two break it up." said the captain. "Q, why are you here?"

"You'll learn soon enough" he said as he once again vanished.

"I hate when he does that." said Riker

* * *

"What does it all mean." Wesley said to himself.

Since he had been released from sickbay, all he had done was try and figure out what had happened to him. He sat in his quarters and thought about what had happened. After sitting there for almost three hours, he finally fell asleep.

"Where am I." he said confused. "I was just in my quarters a second ago."

"Wesley we need you." he heard a voice say

"Where are you." he asked

"We're trapped help us."

"If you'd tell me where you are then I could help you."

"We're trapped in the great vacuum with the balls of fire."

"You mean you're in space."

"Yes what you would call space."

"Do you know where you are."

"We don't know. We were all sleeping on our home planet and when we awoke we were aboard a vessel."

"Do you know who took you from your home world."

"No, no one has contacted us. We're in a large room with a single port to show us that we're in space."

"How many people are with you?"

"We have four and thirty with us. I can no longer maintain this, please help us."

"Wait, I don't know where you are he shouted." but it was to late he had already waken up and she was gone.

* * *

"You think he'll figure it out?"

"I don't know."

"For our sakes let's hope he does."

AN: Well I know it's not much, but it's something. I had hoped to post it sooner, but anyways, how did you like it? Thanks for all your reviews.


	4. Chapter 4

The Unknown

Chapter 4

"What does it mean?" he asked himself.

Wesley had woken up in a cold sweat. Since then he had been just sitting there on the edge of his bed thinking about what had just happened. He couldn't understand why this was happening to him. Of all people, who was he to receive such an urgent cry for help. These sorts of things only happened to important people not him.

"Why me, why? I'm only an acting ensign, not even a graduate from the academy. Why didn't you tell someone who could do something about it." He said in despair

He needed to tell someone about this someone who could deal with this problem. He knew just the person. He put on some clean clothes and left his room.

* * *

Beverly Crusher sat in her office staring at a paper on genetics. She had been doing so for the last three hours. And in that time she hadn't read a word of it. She knew what Deanna had said was right, but still she couldn't stop worrying. After a very fitful night's sleep she finally gave up and came to her office. She had hoped to take her mind off of it by reading the latest paper on genetics, but she couldn't get more than a few words in before she thought about Wesley.

"I know that he is grown and he no longer needs me, but how am I supposed to just stop caring about him" she said exasperatedly.

"Well a lot of good this is dong." She said aloud.

Her shift didn't start for a couple of hours, but she wouldn't be able to sleep and she wouldn't find any relief in the holodeck. That only left her with one option ten forward. So having made up her mind she made her way to the turbolift and was shortly at her destination. Ten forward was empty except for a few people, because most of the crew where in bed or, on duty. She made her way to a table in the back. An attendant asked her what she wanted and she just said water. Instead of the same attendant returning with her drink Guinan showed up. This didn't realy surprise Beverly, because Guinan had a way of sensing when you were troubled. Guinan just sat there for a while before saying,

"I knew you would end up here eventually."

" And how may I ask is that?" she said more to confirm her guess than anything else.

"Well first of all I spoke to counselor Troi and she told me you weren't to happy with what she had to say. And second being a mother myself I knew you wanted to talk about it."

"I guessed the first one, but I didn't think about the second. I do want to talk about it, its driving me crazy. I mean how am I supposed to just let this go? It's fine and dandy to say that, but if she had a kid she would be worried too."

"Maybe she told you that, because she knew that no matter what she said it wouldn't make you feel any better." Guinan suggested.

"Well she could have said something more reassuring." She paused and took a sip of her water. "I just can't help feeling like this, I feel like I'm losing him. I know that he is almost an adult and he will be leaving for the academy soon, but he's still my son."

"A mother never stops caring for their children, but at the moment you can't do anything for him. Perhaps the counselor was just suggesting you try not to let it get to you."

"I know I can't do anything, that's what's so frustrating."

"There is one thing that is always true, you will feel frustrated about being helpless, but you need to remember this, your frustration doesn't help so if you let yourself stay frustrated you will only hinder yourself."

What Guinan said seemed confusing at first, as she had a tendency to do, but after Beverly thought about it she realized that what she was saying was true. She decided Guinan was right, frustration was useless. She thanked Guinan for her help and she resolved not to let herself be frustrated anymore. With that new goal in mind she went back to her office and picked up the pad again and started to read.

* * *

"Enter" said Captain Picard.

"Sir, I wanted to speak to you" Wesley said hesitantly

"Of course, sit down. Would you like something to drink?" he said as he made his way over to the replicator.

" No thank you."

"Tea, Earl Grey, Hot." The captain said to the replicator. He took it and sat behind his desk.

"Now what was it you wanted to talk about." He said prompting Wesley to tell him what was on his mind.

"Well, Sir, I had a dream concerning the people who were asking for help."

"What did you learn?"

"They told me there were thirty-four of them. They said they had been taken from there home planet while they were asleep and right now they are being held aboard some spaceship."

The captain just sat there a moment digesting what he had just heard, before saying

"Well that would explain why they wanted help. Do you have any idea where they are?"

"No, I lost contact before I could ask, but I'm not sure they even know. I wish they would have contacted someone more important" he said in exasperation.

"It is not for you to question your importance. All you need do is try to help these people. The people you consider important weren't always so. They started out much the same as yourself, if they had given up, they wouldn't have gone on to be so 'important'." Captain Picard said.

"Well isn't this a touching moment." Q said moments before flashing into existence. "A truly inspired speech Jean-Luc." He said in a mocking tone.

"Q, this is not the time" he said irritated at his sudden interruption.

"Of course it's the time, I was observing you and I thought I'd tell you how inspiring that speech was. Honestly Jean-Luc you need to learn to take compliments."

"I'd take them if they were really compliments. I still want to know what's your part in all of this. Are you causing these voices?"

"Oh, Jean-Luc you think I would waste my time causing this, I'm merely here to observe it." He said in an offended voice.

"Yes, I do, but even _if_ you aren't causing this what interest do you have in observing it."

"Let's just say I think the boy has potential," and with that he disappeared.

"Just like Q to leave as soon as we're getting somewhere."

"Sir what do you think he means, when he says he thinks I have potential?" Wesley said puzzled by what had just happened.

"I don't know. I wouldn't worry about it and I would stop worrying about the people. Right now you can't do anything for them. You should go back to your quarters and try to get some sleep."

"I don't think that I will be able to after what just happened, but I'll try. Thank you sir for listening, I know you must be busy."

"Wesley, I've always got time to talk when you need advice. Now I want you to go back to your quarters and get some rest, as a matter of fact I think you should take a break from your regular duties for a couple of days."

"Thank you sir," he said a little relieved that he would have some more time to think about what was happening to him. With that he left the captain's ready room and made his way back to his quarters, hoping he could get back to sleep.

* * *

"Captain, we have and incoming priority one message from Starfleet command, it for your eyes only."

"I'll take it in hear, Mr. Worf."

There was a momentary delay then the screen lit with the Starfleet insignia and Admiral Savar came on the screen.

"Admiral Savar" Picard said.

"Sorry, Captain no time for pleasantries. We have received intelligence reports that the Romulans are up to something. We believe they may have entered the neutral zone. Time is of the essence so I'm ordering you to leave immediately at your maximum safe speed."

The Admiral went on to tell the captain what information they had, which to Picard's displeasure was very little.

"Remember, Captain under no circumstances are you to enter the neutral zone. You are to leave immediately and report to me as soon as you get there."

"Yes Sir." Captain Picard said while standing.

He leaves his ready room and says:

"Ensign, lay in a course for the neutral zone, Warp 9.4"

"Course laid in sir." The ensign said in a somewhat nervous voice.

"Engage."

"Mr. Data, how long will it take us to reach the neutral zone."

"At our present speed it will take four hours and twenty minutes."

AN: Well another chapter down. Sorry about the wait, I've just been really busy lately. Well I did use the time to figure out ultimately where this story is headed, Now all I need to do is get to that point. I think this was one of my most inspired chapters yet. I promise I'll try to get the next chapter done faster this time.


	5. Chapter 5

The Unknown

Chapter 5

AN: Yeah, yeah. I know it seems like forever since I posted. Well here's the new chapter hope you enjoy.

The Sudden jump to such a high warp was surprising to Geordi, but he knew that if it was something important the captain would inform him in time. The most likely scenario was that the captain was still digesting new orders. He liked to keep his senior officers informed, but he also liked to have some time to review his orders. The chief engineer took a moment to recall how often they had made a sudden jump to warp 9 or higher, and came up with only a few times it wasn't serious. But on a starship the only certainty was that there would always be unexpected outcomes. Sometimes he felt like he was left out of certain aspects of activities, his job was to keep the ship running and he did that very well. He could go to the bridge and monitor the engineering section from there, but he felt like he should just wait to find out what was going on. So he continued his work, until as he thought the captain summoned all the senior officers to the conference room.

* * *

The Captain sat in his command seat for a while and watched the stars flash by on the view screen. He knew that eventually he should tell his senior officers what was going on, but he was still trying to figure that out himself. The turn of events was surprising but he knew that on a starship that was always a likely occurrence. The Romulans as of late had been more active so the sudden assignment wasn't out of the ordinary. But for some reason he couldn't understand, this was strange. The captain knew with all his years of experience that this was somehow connected to the incident with Wesley, but what he couldn't understand was why or how. In any case he needed to bring his senior officers up to speed, but for now he wasn't going to voice his intuitions, he would wait for some more evidence first.

"Mr. Data, inform the senior staff there will be a meeting in ten minutes."

As the senior staff gathered they were all curious as to why, they were headed for the neutral zone at such a high warp. They took their seats and made light conversation of the situation. As usual the captain was the last to arrive , being that he was expected to be the one who was waited on and not the one waiting. The captain had never really bought this at first, but as his captaincy grew longer his views shifted. The captain, usually the most senior officer aboard a starship, is allowed to pervade an air of arrogance.

"Let's get started people."

"Starfleet command has ordered our immediate presence at the neutral zone. Apparently they believe they may be up to something. Over the past month Romulan activity around the neutral zone has increased considerably. Recently there are indications that they may have crossed into the neutral zone so the admiralty would like us to investigate." He let all of this sink in for a moment before continuing. "We are under strict orders not to cross into the neutral zone under any circumstance."

"What would the Romulans want with this sector, there is no strategic advantage." said Worf with his usual gruffness.

"That is one of the reasons why Starfleet command has assigned us to this task." the captain reminded him.

"Maybe they are just probing our defenses." Riker said.

"Mr. Data, I want you to research any other relevant information on this. I need to know if there are any reasons why the Romulans have any interest in that sector."

"Yes sir, I will endeavor to find the relevant information."

"Mr. Worf, I want you to make sure we are ready for anything. We will not engage the romulans unless provoked, but I would feel better if we were ready for it if it does happen."

"Yes, sir."

"Doctor, I need you to prepare sickbay for heavy casualties, if it comes to that."

"I'll set up triage centers on key decks."

"Sir, you act as though you are expecting battle." Riker said.

"No number one, I hope not. I just don't want to be caught unprepared. Are there any other questions?" He paused for a moment. "Good, we have a little less than four hours until we reach the neutral zone. I need the ship to be ready for anything. Dismissed."

* * *

Wesley sat in his quarters thinking about how he could help the people. The talk with the captain had helped him to not feel so strained over it. It had allowed him to get some sleep, but with all this free time he couldn't help but think about them. He pored over the ideas of how to figure out where these people were, but came up with nothing. The other thing on his mind was what was going on with the sudden change in plans aboard the ship. He had heard that they were headed towards the neutral zone at high warp, but no one knew why, or at least weren't discussing it. An interesting problem to say the least, but he had to wonder if this was connected to these people or not.

"I wish they would have told me more" he said aloud.

He fortunately had not had another dream, but he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. The quicker he could figure out who had taken them or where they were, the better. He felt a little lost, because normally he would be able to distract himself from things like this with homework or during his duty shift. If he had been given time off under other circumstances, he might have enjoyed the idea of not having to work, but instead it just gave him more time to think about these people. In all his thoughts he felt something out of place, he couldn't put his finger on it at first. A sudden realization came to him and he found himself fixed on a spot on the wall.

"I know you are there Q." he said. He couldn't explain why he knew it but he did know Q was observing him from within that spot on the wall.

"Very good. You surprise me, I didn't think you could tell I was there. I was right about you, you have some rather extraordinary talents."

"You mean, you didn't want me to see you?"

"Well I left a portion of myself noticeable to only a few beings. Most humans would never have sensed me. So you see that makes you quite unique."

"I don't understand."

"Of course you don't. Even a unique individual like you, still thinks like a human. The question is, can you learn not to think like a human before its too late for those people."

"Well, how do I do that?" he asked, but Q was already gone. "Great, just when I was getting somewhere." he said aloud.

* * *

The trip to the neutral zone was quickly coming to an end, and the captain still didn't know what to make of the situation. His senior staff were all hard at work doing the jobs he had assigned them. Meanwhile, he was left to think of all the possible outcomes of the current mission. In a way he envied the earlier days, when he was like them. Back then he had very specific tasks to complete, and didn't have to worry about the entire ship. Counselor Troi sat to his left eying him. She knew he had a lot to process and looked like she wanted him to talk to her. But she didn't press the issue, she just sat there with a look that said, if you want to talk I'm here. She could be pushy at times, but right now she knew he would rather deal with this himself.

The time passed quickly as each one did their job. Captain Picard was busy analyzing the stats of the critical systems. Occasionally a representative from the major systems would give him updates. He could see the tension in their faces. The word had spread quickly that they were heading to the neutral zone at high warp. The obvious tension did not concern the captain. He knew that his people would do their jobs.

"Sir, we are in range of the neutral zone." Data reported.

"Thank you Mr. Data. Helm slow to impulse 2 and bring us within 40,000 kilometers."

"Aye Sir. Slowing to impulse… We are at 40,000 kilometers.:

"All stop and hold position. Mr. Worf open a channel to Starfleet Command and patch it through to my ready room." he said as he stood.

Once in his seat he waited for the admiral to appear on the screen. There would inevitably be a delay as the various people would be told and eventually the admiral was informed and found the nearest view screen. Finally the admiral appeared.

"Captain, report."

"Admiral we have arrived at the neutral zone and are holding at 40,000 kilometers."

"Very good, Captain. Your orders are to monitor the neutral zone and if there are any reasonable leads to investigate them. Let me make it clear, captain, you are not to enter the neutral zone without authorization."

"Understood, Sir."

"Well then captain, I leave you to your mission." he said as the transmission ended.

He got up and headed for the bridge. He had wanted to ask the admiral questions about why it was necessary to send them here, but the tone in which the admiral spoke had indicated that either he didn't know or he wasn't going to tell him. Picard had often wondered why he didn't join the admiralty so he could be a part of their planning process. He always quickly reminded himself it was because being an admiral means you have to play politics, a subject at which he isn't good at. His pondering were interrupted by Wesley entering the bridge.

"Mr. Crusher, what are you doing here. You were temporarily relieved of duty."

"I know sir, but its urgent. I've figured out were they are."

AN: Another one bites the dust. Sorry it was another long gap, I hope you like it. If you do feel free to leave reviews that say as much.


	6. Chapter 6

The Unknown

Chapter 6

Riker wasn't into Starfleet politics too heavily, but of course being in a command structure he had to be. So as a result he wasn't exactly sure what Starfleet was thinking on this particular incident. For them to order the flagship to the border at such a high speed meant either there was trouble brewing or they wanted a show of force. Riker also understood that there was more going on here than they were being told, which made him edgy. The Enterprise being the flagship was usually one of the first ships to be made aware of things. While he wasn't always trusted with this knowledge the captain was and he would say that some things were still classified, but he hadn't which made him even more edgy. He had been tempted to voice these thoughts at the briefing, but he was pretty sure everyone felt the same. Romulans and vague actions don't usually end well.

When the Enterprise had made her sudden jump he had been in his quarters. Like most good officers he had instantly felt the sudden acceleration. Some claimed that the inertial dampeners cancelled so much of it out it was almost impossible to know that, but after serving on the ship for so long he could tell. It had startled him he had almost asked the captain via the intercom, but he had known if it had been of immediate importance the captain would have contacted him. So instead he had gotten into uniform and headed for the bridge and taken his position without question. He took a note that his display said they were headed for the neutral zone, that was when his initial edginess had occurred. It had only gotten worse after being told what little Starfleet had deemed to tell them. So now he found himself sitting and waiting. It would seem though he wouldn't have to wait much longer for some excitement. For as he was thinking Wesley Crusher stepped out of the turbo lift with a look on his face that told the first officer they were in store for some action.

* * *

"I know sir but it's urgent. I've figured out where they are."

Ten minutes earlier

The encounter with Q was confusing. It wasn't like him to be so helpful. Yet it was like him to leave without explaining something fully. His usual cryptic riddles were all he would give and yet these riddles seemed to make some sense, while at the same time they didn't make any. So he sat there and thought about what Q had said, then it came to him that some part of him knew what he had told him and yet at the same time another didn't. Instinctually he could sense something he hadn't before, he could feel some sort of connection between his mind and those peoples. It was difficult to find at first but the harder he concentrated on it the easier it was to "see" for lack of a better word. Slowly he traced it, but a brief lapse in concentration forced him to start over. The longer he tried the easier it was to do. He had to keep absolute concentration, but he painstakingly managed to follow the link. This link was somehow telling him exactly where the people were, he knew it had to. He was startled by the location.

"What do you mean you've figured out where they are. Did they speak to you in another dream?"

"No Sir, I sensed it. It's hard to explain but I can sense the connection they have made with me and I followed it back to its origin."

"Are you sure, I mean can you be certain you are right." he asked a little befuddled.

"Yes I know it, I'm not entirely sure how but I know for sure where they are. Sir they are in an uncharted sector of the neutral zone, not very far from here."

"Well now that puts us in somewhat of a predicament. We are not to enter the neutral zone. Can you be absolutely certain about their location?"

"I know its hard to understand, sir, but I know they are there."

"Be that as it may, we still can't enter. I could contact Starfleet command, but they probably won't authorize such a venture on this evidence. For the time being we will have to stick to our current mission and if anything more substantive comes up we can pursue this further."

"But sir…" is all he got out before catching the glance from the captain. It was a glace that was well known to the crew. It was the glance that stopped even the most experienced officers in their tracks. This glance wasn't so much as menacing as it said the discussion is over.

"Look, I know that it's difficult to just wait, but its necessary. Our current mission could be vital for the Federation."

"Yes sir, I understand. I guess I'll be going now sir, but with your permission I would like to continue to investigate this further." he asked hopefully.

"Granted, but only if it doesn't interfere with our current mission. Understood."

"Understood" with that said he made his way back to the turbo lift.

* * *

Wesley once again found himself staring blankly and wondering about the connections. So far he had looked through every report he could find that made mention of the sector, which as he expected was just a few reports with no real information. His next step was to find mention of what was occurring to him. Starfleet had had some experience with telepathy and psychic ability. Most of which was with alien races. It was rare for a human to suddenly develop such things, but not entirely unheard of. He had read a few reports so far and hadn't really found a connection yet. So he sat for a moment and tried to pinpoint what his powers could be described as. Telepathy maybe, but it would have to be very strong if he was doing it on his own. It was equally as possible they themselves were the doing this and it had nothing to do with him at all. He found that unlikely considering counselor Troi, one of the vulcan officers, or a select few other species had innate talent in that area and would be more likely to have received the message. The only conclusion he could come to is that in some way his abilities or his makeup were unique enough to pick up on this where the others couldn't.

"Now that puts me at square one. I'm not sure of my abilities other than I'm the only one they have contacted. Well I guess for now I'll just keep searching and go from there." he said to himself with an edge of frustration.

"Honestly, I will never understand you humans." Q said as he flashed into existence. Q let that statement hang for a moment then said " I mean always questioning one's own abilities and frantically searching for some precedent. You should be happy, you've shown much more talent than other humans."

" Well we aren't omniscient so we need some basis to compare to. If I could instantly know what all this meant then I wouldn't be searching and not finding anything." he retorted.

"So defensive. But you are wasting your time. You should be using your new found powers instead of trying to find someone like you. But that might be asking too much of you. You are after all still human if not an exceptional one."

"How do I do that when I don't even know what they are exactly?"

"Well I guess you will just have to find a way. That is of course if you want to do anything about these strangers."

"If that's all the help you are going to be you can leave."

"Oh well I guess my energies are wasted here. But don't come crying to me when things don't go your way." and with that he was gone.

"Oh great just what I needed. On top of trying to figure out my new abilities I now have to figure out what the heck Q was talking about. Well I guess the next few hours will be interesting."

* * *

The tension of the crew was almost palpable especially for someone of empathic abilities. With the recent events it would have been a bad sign if the crew wasn't nervous . Theses facts didn't make it any easier to bear. The more personal nature to some of these tensions only compounded the emotional overload. First there was what was going on with Wesley and then as if to add insult to injury there was the problem with the romulans. At times like these her betazoid training was essential. The emotional overload would cause headaches or maybe even a fainting spell, but since she would tune them out and even block them entirely if necessary she was fine, as long as she kept her bariers up. At least she wasn't in need of something to do, the high tensions had also led to more appointments. Some expressing concern over the romulans, some over Wesley.. Some had even expressed in a round about way a concern over the possibility that the aliens could take over and that he was still walking around as if nothing had happened. She had assured them that there was no evidence they could and now he was off duty and wasn't interacting with any major systems. The captain would have never confined him to quarters or someone to watch him until there was more proof anyways. The counselor had to admit that what had happened to him was a little disconcerting. and she couldn't say that she wasn't a little worried herself, but duty always comes first. To speak with any of her patients about these things would only lead to more worry.

* * *

Wesley found himself in a strange place, he was in some sort of room. The room kind of looked like some sort of cargo bay, but it certainly was not a standard Starfleet design. Then he noticed that he was not alone. He was standing among what looked to be refugees. These refugees looked very similar to humans but they weren't quite the same. He knew somehow that he was seeing his surrounding though another person's eyes because it seemed distorted somehow. 'I must be in contact with the aliens' he thought. 'I don't understand, did i fall asleep or did they somehow make contact with me while i was conscious.' His ponderings were interrupted by what must have been the reason he was seeing this in the first place. For now for the first time he noticed a figure that was different from the others. This figure was in a heated discusion with one of the refugees and it looked like it might come to blows. Sure enough a moment later the different one was lying on the floor, struck down by the other alien. A few others looked like they were about to join in when the doors to the room opened and a well armed group entered, preventing any further violence. Wesley had been pretty sure of the captors race before hand and all doubts were eraced as soon as the fight had been stoped. Then all of a sudden he found himself back where he had started.

"This is big, I better tell captain Picard." he said to himself as he made his way to the door.

A few moments later he found himself in the captain's ready room. The captain as always offered to get him something from the replicator. Wesley politely declined and waited for the captain to get his usual cup of earl grey and sit down. Once the captain was seated he took a sip of his favorite drink and paused for a moment before saying,

"What was it you wanted to see me about, have you made any progress on the aliens."

"Well sir, I had another vision."

"Oh I see, and did this vision help." This was basically the captains way of politely asking you to tell him what the vision was.

"Well yes and no. . . " he started as he proceeded to tell the captain about what he had seen.

"There is no doubt in your mind then."

"No sir, the aliens that contacted me are being held by romulans."

"Do you know what this could mean. If they romulans are indeed their captors and if they are where you say they are, then the romulans are currently in the neutral zone."

"Yes sir, I understand. We have to help these people though."

"Wesley, you realize what you are asking of me. I am under direct orders from Starfleet command not to enter the neutral zone. I have no reason to doubt what you are saying is true, but I'm afraid Starfleet command will not. After all even you can't explain how you know these things."

"I know sir, but I feel like we must help these people. I just have a feeling like this is something important or at the very least a very serious occurrence. I'm asking you to trust me on this sir."

"I do trust you and if the romulans are indeed in the neutral zone then we have some grounds to go there ourselves, but I don't think Starfleet command would agree."

"I understand sir." he said starting to stand to leave, but he was motioned back into his seat.

The captain took a long sip of his tea. Then he stood and looked out his window as he so often did when contemplating a difficult situation. Wesley just sat there watching the captain, knowing that the captain was carefully considering his options. At times he could make life and death decisions in the blink of an eye. He was a man of action, but also a man of reason. The captain would have attributed his uncanny ability to stay alive to knowing when to act quickly and when to stop and think. In a way watching the captain think was awe inspiring, knowing that here was one of the most decorated and skilled captains in starfleet and that somehow he was going to come up with the wining solution. So Wesley waited watching and knowing that when the captain turned around his mind would be made up. If at that point the captain said no, Wesley knew better than to try and convince him again. The captain took a moment longer and then turned around before saying "come" and motioning him to the door. Once on the bridge he made an indication for one of the side seats beside the main command seats and said.

"Ensign set a course for the coordinates provided by Mr. Crusher at maximum warp."

A moment went by as Wesley entered them on a touch screen and the ensign said " Sir those coordinates are in the neutral zone"

"Yes they are, is the course laid in?"

"Yes sir!"

"Engage. Mr. Data how long will it take us to arrive?" he asked as he sat down

"At maximum warp, Five minutes and twelve seconds." he said with his usual precision.

Riker sat down next to him and asked "Something wrong captain."

"Well number one that's what I intend to find out. Mr. data those coordinates are for a planet in an unexplored solar system are they not?"

"Yes sir, the computer database has only a few records of it from the closest ships to pass by. From the long range sensor readings it is the only M class planet in a system of 5 planets."

"Thank you, Mr. Data."

For the remaining time the crew went about there business until the ensign said, "Sir ariving in system."

"Slow to impulse and assume orbit when in range."

"Aye sir."

"Mr. Data do any of our sensors indicate that there could be romulan ships in the area."

"No detectable emissions, but the romulans could be cloaked if they are indeed in the area." he paused "Sir I'm getting unusual reading from the planet."

"What do you mean by unusual."

"It seems that there is some sort of interference blocking most of our sensor scans on it."

"See if you can clear it up Mr. ..."

"Captain, two romulan war birds are decloaking." Worf said with a mixture of surprise and excitement.

AN: Cliff hanger, can't hang on much longer. Wow that was a dozy of a chapter. Well hoped you liked it. I feel the end is near when finally the mystery is unraveled. Please leave a review.


	7. Chapter 7

The Unknown

Chapter 7

"Captain, two romulan war birds are decloaking." Worf said with a mixture of surprise and excitement.

"Red alert" Riker said with his usual promptness in these situations

"Captain they are locking disruptors."

"Ready phasers and photon torpedoes. Hail them."

"No response. Sir! They are firing."

"Evasive maneuvers, return fire. Status report."

"Shields at 80 percent, minor damage to one warbird."

"The war birds are coming to bear, they are trying to set up a cross fire."

"Ensign hard about, try to keep one ship between us and the other warbird."

"The ship is firing, shields at 70 percent returning fire. Warbird has taken moderate damage to aft shields."

"Good ensign stay with them make sure the other warbird can't fire at us without risk to their allies."

"Sir our weapons have been disabled!"

"Disabled, How?"

"Unknown, they won't engage."

"Captain, warp engines now offline" said a baffled Geordi.

"It would seem we are running out of options." The captain said with an air of resignation and with that he took a seat..

"Worf, try hailing them." he said after his momentary reverie.

"No response."

While all this was going on Wesley was sitting there trying to see if he could locate the aliens. According to his earlier discoveries they should be aboard those ships since it was the right area. But when he concentrated on trying to locate them what had seemed so clear was now foggy he knew he was in the right area but there was no way of knowing exactly where they were.

As the red lights and warning klaxons flashed and blared respectively, the captain took a moment to wonder why they would have been here in the first place. It's true that the romulans did not value preservation of cultures and therefore would not feel any remorse for messing with these people. In order to justify this invasion of the neutral zone, the aliens must have been deemed very valuable for study. The worst part of this was he had no idea how they could have managed to disable their weapons.

As if reading his mind "Captain, something doesn't feel right about this" Riker said.

"I have the same feeling number one, there is something missing to this picture."

"Mr. Data have you been able to get any more information about that planet."

"No sir, it seems to have some sort of interference. I can not determine if it is natural or artificial in nature."

"What the devil is going on then?" he asked rhetorically.

"Sir, we are… but he was interrupted by

"Federation starship, your weapons have been rendered harmless." said a female voice.

As soon as Wesley heard that voice he knew it. It took him a moment to place it exactly, but he knew it just as sure as he had known the location.

"Captain, that's the voice of one of the aliens." He blurted

"Yes Wesley and you have done well to lead them here."

AN: Well I guess I'll have to leave you hanging one last time. I know I'm evil :D . If you read my profile sometime between the last chapter and this one I said as much. Well please leave a review. OH and don't worry it will all make sense soon.


	8. Chapter 8

The Unknown

Chapter 8

AN: Think of this either as an earlier New Years present or a late Christmas present

When the red alert siren went off Beverly was sitting at her desk in her office. At normal times sickbay would have been bustling with all the preparations to treat serious injuries. Given the circumstances at hand, she had already prepared her teams for this. The few that were just on call would be making there way here now, but most were already there quietly doing some work. She couldn't help but wonder if Wesley was alright. She chided herself remembering that he was grown up now and would not be frightened by this. With that in mind she calmly got out of her chair and made her way over to the gathered personnel.

"Alright people, stand by for casualties." She said with her most reassuring voice.

With that handled she pressed went to her computer terminal and sent the indication that sickbay was ready and standing by. She could have used the comm system, but this way it was less intrusive. She waited a moment and got the acknowledged signal back.

"I hope we come through all right" she whispered to herself.

* * *

The magnitude of that statement struck Wesley dumb. He had stood up when he said it and now he found himself sitting down. He could never believe that in his desire to help he would get the Enterprise in trouble. 'No this can't be, I was so sure they were in danger. How could I have missed this." He thought to himself. And yet there stood the alien lady as if to contradict his mental reassurances. To make matters worse the whole bridge was silently digesting that last statement.

The first person to break the silence that had fallen over the bridge was the captain.

"Are you saying that you led us here through Wesley."

"Yes, I am. You see captain our people are very powerful telepaths."

"Why, what do you want from us."

"Well it was the practice of our people to lure more advanced races here, races only slightly more advanced than ourselves and then steal their technology, but as you can see you have nothing to offer us."

"Then why lure us here in the first place?" Riker asked

"We are from another part of the galaxy, we used our science to transport our whole society here. We have only been here for a few weeks and did not realize we were so much more advanced than the dominant races in this sector. We merely sought out individuals that could receive our message and broadcast it."

"Then why not let us go?" captain Picard asked.

"We do not wish to be known, therefore we will destroy your vessel."

* * *

Thankfully the firefight didn't last very long and there were very few casualties. In normal circumstances this would have been a relief, but under these it was more disconcerting. Beverly was busy dealing with one of the worst casualties, a crewman who had some second degree electrical burns from an exploding panel. She hadn't been formally briefed yet on the situation but she knew it had something to do with the alien planet. A planet which was located by Wesley and under the situation and circumstances Picard had chosen to come to. She couldn't help but feel worried with how Wesley might feel, He had grown so much in such a short time, she felt she didn't know him anymore. 'He can handle himself' a part of her chided, but another said 'He needs your help. She of course knew better than to try and coddle him, but she wasn't sure where to draw the line. She suspected that until he was a little older this question would be almost impossible to answer and may never be answerable. She sighed and continued her work, for better or worse all she could do was her work and wait.

* * *

Destroyed! Wesley almost felt like curling up into a ball the worst possible outcome was now a seeming reality. 'Why me, why did I have to know where they were' The thought had already crossed his mind, but it was never so loud. All he could think was that when Starfleet investigates they would all blame him. Everyone would know Captain Picard went by what he said. All the families would blame him for their loss. He was still on the brige but felt as if he wasn't part of it. He was vaguely aware that people were moving and some must have been speaking, but he couldn't hear them. A group of armed romulans could have been there and he would have done no more than make a mental note of it.

Meanwhile the captain had been stunned for a moment, but rebounded almost immediately

"Destroyed! What do you mean destroyed?"

"I mean exactly that your ship will cease to exist. There one moment, gone the next." She said in a matter of fact way.

"I assure you we mean you no harm."

"That fact is undeniably obvious, but given some time and enough people, maybe even with the help of your apparent enemies, it is possible however unlikely that you could retaliate. Our race is not a race of risk takers, we do not allow even the smallest chance of disaster to occur."

"Our people are ones of peace, we will even sign treaties that guarantee you seclusion."

"Treaties are so easily thrown aside, when opportunity arises. They are merely words with no real weight. I will not discuss this any further. We will give you one of your days and then we will destroy you." With that the view screen went blank

"All external communications are down." Worf said in a frustrated voice.

"Call a meeting of all senior staff and section chiefs. Advise them of the situation we are in and tell them I want ideas in one hour. I don't care how absurd it may sound. I want everything on the table."

"Wesley are you okay?" Deana asked in a concerned voice.

It was just now that the captain noticed that Wesley was sitting absolutely still with a blank star on his face.

"Mr. Crusher…Mr. Crusher!" the second time he had put all the weight of authority into it, but it still didn't elicit a response.

'It's my fault. It's my fault' kept repeating in his head over and over. Then the world went dark.

* * *

Sickbay

"What happened to him?" the captain asked.

"There's nothing physically wrong with him but he seems to be catatonic." Dr. Crusher said the deep concern showed in her voice.

"The best I can tell captain is that he is in a severe state of emotional shock. He couldn't cope with the situation so he withdrew." Deanna said.

"How long will he be like this?"

"It's hard to say, he could get over it in a matter of hours or in a matter of days. I can try to reach him, but at this point I don't think I'll have much success. This happened as a result of emotional distress and it will take the body time to process that."

"Well then counselor do what you can. I want to be advised when he is conscious."

"I'll keep you informed sir." The Dr. said.

With that said the captain left sickbay. Beverly made her way back to her office. She started to poor over texts on this occurrence. The only conclusions she could make was exactly what the counselor had said. Seeing no other alternatives she decided then to review the whole situation and see alternative paths she could have taken. She was so intent on her work that when the counselor came she didn't notice until the third time she said her name.

"Beverly, maybe you should take it easier. You've been working on that for two hours without taking a break."

Had it really been two hours? She had been so intent on her work that it seemed only a short time. The counselor then had been with Wesley for two hours trying her methods to help him cope and help him to wake up. That she was now in her office told her that she had made little or no progress and had little hope of doing so in the immediate future. She of course would continue to check on him, but she was doing the exact thing that she had suggested.

"I must stay here and make sure he is ok."

"You won't help him by wearing yourself out."

"I have to do something! I can't just sit around and hope for the best. I just can't."

"I know its hard, but you should at least take a break if only to get up and stretch and get something to drink."

"In a minute counselor." she said hoping to shoo her away.

The counselor continued to stand there for a bit staring at her. Then finally she sighed and left.

Well now that that part is done I can get back to work. With that the doctor continued what she was doing.

* * *

20 Hours remain

In the four hours since the alien had announced their destruction the crew had been hard at work. The captain had listened to the proposals and had picked what he thought to be the most viable for the amount of manpower vs likelihood of success. The circumstances were grim at best most of the proposals he knew probably would not work a few had a glimmer of hope, but there was no perfect solution. The senior staff were about to have a meeting on progress on progress. He had told them to report any new leads as well. So he would again have to consider options he might cut some that were going in order to pursue new ones or speed up the current ones. One person he missed in situation like this was lying in sickbay. Wesley had a knack for these situations. If not figuring out the solution he helped implement it. This time was different he seemed to have some inside connection that perhaps could be used. No, he's gone through so much he's just a boy, a special boy, but he needs to recover. He may not have a future if he doesn't help. The captain finally settled on letting him help, but he wouldn't push him.

* * *

19 Hours remain

'Destroyed, destroyed… thank you for leading them here… its all your fault your ship will be destroyed… help us Wesley…' The words echoed endlessly in his mind.

'No!' he yells 'I will stop you somehow.'

'You cannot, you cannot even control your own mind.' The alien voice taunted

'I must' and with that he concentrated all his will on overcoming the alien.

'You are strong, but not strong enough.' It was then that he felt his efforts pushed back so severely he almost blacked. Blacked out mentally anyways, technically he already was.

'None of your crew can overcome me."

'We will, we must, we will not sit by and let you destroy us.'

'Oh but you must." He felt the wave of voices try to overcome him.

'No, No!, NO!'

'Wesley… Its ok I'm here."

"Mom? When did I get in sickbay?"

"You were in a state of shock they brought you here, you were comatose for 5 hours."

"5 hours? It didn't seem that long. Did we get away from the aliens?"

"No, They gave us one day."

"So we only have 19 hours left and then they destroy us."

"I'm afraid so. The crew is working on ways out but at the moment we have no way to prevent it."

"I've got to help" he said as he tried to get up but he was met by a hand pushing him back down.

"Wesley you need to rest. You've just gotten out of a coma. I need to run some tests."

"But Mom, we don't have much time. I caused this I need to try to help fix it."

"I'm afraid you must stay at least long enough to let me run some scans."

"But, Mom."

"No buts I need to know you're alright before I can release you. The captain would expect no less."

"B…" he trailed off seeing the look on her face. He knew from the combined look of determination and worry he would just have to endure the hour or so of tests.

* * *

18 Hours remain

"Alright you're done." she said with a hint of frustration. "There is nothing wrong with you that I can find."

"Well then can I go?" he said with obvious anxiety.

"You should really take it easy, you've been through a lot recently. You are free to go if you must, but don't push yourself."

Now that he was finally out of sickbay, the first thing he needed to do was find out from the captain what he could do. So he headed to the turbo lift and boarded. "bridge" the real question was what could they hope to accomplish in such a short period of time against someone so far advanced. There must be a way to undo what he had done. As soon as the doors opened he could see that the captain must be in his ready room. Often Riker could be found on the bridge in times like this, but he suspected that like most of the other senior staff he was working on a solution. He took a quick look around as he made his way to the ready room, and saw he was correct not even Worf was here, the most senior officer was a junior lieutenant who would normally be the next in command during Data's watches. Being that Data never abandoned his post unless absolutely necessary in which case he usually informed the captain, he suspected that the lieutenant had never had command of the bridge. In this case he technically did but the captain was a short distance away and the lieutenant's primary job was to inform the captain. With this crisis going on everyone would be on duty so it was no surprise.

'Well might as well get it over with' he thought as he touched the panel to notify the captain he was there.

"Enter" he said and the doors slid apart. "Mr. Crusher, I see you're feeling better" the captain said in what sounded like genuine concern.

"Yes Sir, I am and I would like to help with this mess." Maybe not the best choice of words but mess it was. He would not normally have been so forward with the captain but the circumstances dictated it.

"I see and have you been cleared by the Dr." this seemed a mere formality cause the captain knew as well as anyone that he would not have been able to make it more than a few yards outside of sickbay if he had not been.

"Yes"

"Well then I think that Data is working on something that has a good chance and he is in need of someone with your particular skill set. He is working in the main science lab. Under normal circumstances I would recommend that you rested instead of returning to duty, but we need everyone now."

"I understand sir, that is why I came. I will report to Data then."

"Dismissed." with that said Wesley turned and made his way out.

'This could be a tough one.' he thought as he entered the turbolift.

* * *

16 hours remain

Data's plan did have potential, but much like the others there was no guarantee or even that much of a hope that it would actually work. This was exactly why he data and several other officers were hard at work trying to improve and figure out how to implement it. The precious few hours they had left was being spent on a continuous process of test and check. At this point they could only hope that when it came time it would work. It was somewhere in the middle of this work that he had this strange feeling that he was missing something. He checked his work and found nothing wrong. He shrugged it off and continued his work. Then the feeling came back a feeling that somehow he knew something important but had missed it. He tried hard to think of what it could be that he knew. It was like a voice in his head was saying that he had the key to stop this. Now he stopped what he was doing if this could save the ship he needed to figure it out. Data must have noticed his distraction because he started to make his way over. It was like he had a mental connection with the computer that informed him when he stopped working. Then something clicked in his head. There was a chance that he had never considered.

"Is everything alright?"

"I think I have just come up with a solution to our problem. I need to check something first."

"The Captain will want to hear about it as soon as you are ready."

Ten minutes later he found himself on the turbolift on the way to the bridge. This was by no means fool proof but something told him this would work, it just had to. Once again he was standing outside the captains door, but this time he felt much better about the situation.

"Come." the captain said

"Captain I think I've got a way to stop this."

"Well then lets hear it."

With that said Wesley began to explain "Well captain, I have all along had some sort of mental connection with this alien. At the beginning it was one way the alien spoke through me, but later i interacted with them at least on a subconscious level. All indications are that this is more of a two way link, so what i propose is that we use that. I think that with help I might be able to take over if only briefly the alien and perhaps we could escape."

"There are no assurances that you could overcome her."

"No sir, we won't know until we try. I have checked the crew and we have a few vulcans and a few others with some telepathic abilities. If we could figure out a way to join our minds we might have a better chance."

"Counselor Troi, please report to the captains ready room."

They waited until she had come and sat down. Then Wesley told his plan again.

"Well counselor do you think it could work."

"Its hard to say, but I think that there's a good possibility that the alien will not expect it and therefore be less likely to be prepared for it."

"So in your opinion its worth pursuing then."

"Yes I believe it is."

"Then I want you to organize the necessary people to work on this."

"Yes, Sir." with that she got up and waited for Wesley to do the same. They both made their way out of the ready room.

* * *

13 hours remain

The phrase easier said then done was starting to become very relevant. The group had been assembled and the unification process was starting, but it was not nearly complete. The vulcans in the group were basically the glue. Vulcans have been widely thought of as touch telepaths and while it was true that their strongest forms was in touch they were also able to project and intercept thoughts. The group that had been chosen were mostly mixed races of humans and telpathic races this made them a little tough to incorporate. Some like Deanna had had training in these areas, while others had only the vaguest training in general control. The vulcans for their part did not waver or show signs of frustration at impossibility, but he could tell that they had reservations. As yet he had barely had anything to do with the group, him not being a true telepath merely someone with a link he really didn't need to train. The plan was to use the vulcans to link the minds and then him to open the connection and they would then focus through the link. A good plan if they could manage to get the first part under control. He sighed as the illusion of how easy it would be to save the day quickly disappeared.

* * *

7 Hours remain

They were very close now. The tests of joining their minds were starting to be successful. They still had to work on some points to make their union seamless. It was understood that if they couldn't keep their minds in union the alien could possibly dismantle them one by one. This was thought somewhat unlikely considering the strength of their combined minds but counselor Troi and the vulcans did not want to take any chances.

"Well people we are getting close, but we can't push too hard. I want you to take a brief break to get some refreshments." Troi said.

Wes followed the group to the nearest replicator. They had finally been helping him in some basic techniques that would help him to open the initial contact. The rest of the group got their drinks and made for the nearest seats in the room. They all made small talk about various other things, but most of it was brief and some even had fits of nervous laughter. They all knew that this may be the only hope of the ship and they didn't want to be the reason why they failed. As people finished their drinks they started to prepare again for the union.

* * *

3 Hours remain

They finally had worked out all the problem in the union. It was time to inform the captain. The captain had already been alerted and was heading to them.

"Captain, we are as ready as we will be to try this." Troi said as he walked in.

"Good then, We are making final preparation on all the other attempts. I want your plan to go in effect first that way it has the best chance at succeeding, if the alien suspects something beforehand then maybe they will be able to stop it. If you fail we will move through the list. I will be on the bridge standing by for your signal that you are about to attempt it."

"Sir, we will do our best." Wesley said

"I know you will." he said as he made his way out of the room.

"Alright people, we will begin the linking of the minds immediately, prepare yourselves." Troi said

After a few minutes they were one except for Wesley who always was the last to join, he was to tell the captain.

"Crusher to the bridge."

"Bridge here" the captain replied

"Captain we are ready to begin the attempt. We will attempt to get the alien to drop the field that is effecting our systems. You should stand by to warp out as soon as the field goes down."

"Acknowledged."

"I'm ready." with that the vulcan near him made the traditional contacts to join minds.

He felt the wave of minds join with him. The connection they echoed. He concentrated and felt for the connection it was always somewhat hard to find. Finally he found it and tried to initiate contact. At first nothing happened, but then as all focused on it they began to get results they could hear the thoughts of the alien. Further, they all willed then they began to be able to see what the alien saw. It was at this point that they met a barrier the alien was aware of the intrusion. She put up a wall. They concentrated and dismantled it and grasped for more control. They got a bit more and another barrier went up, this time they got through it faster. They started to push the aliens conscious into a corner of the mind. She resisted and it took a few more minutes to do it but they did. Now they had uncontested control, but the question was where and how to deactivate the field, they probed the mind it took another few minutes until they found it. They willed the body to oblige their wills. Finally they had the hand on the control pannel and were punching in the sequence.

"NO, YOU can not escape us we will hunt you down." she screamed

But they were in her mind they searched for the truth, they were dismayed at first. Then they found a memory of being overcome by others before and the society always found it more appealing to move rather than risk anymore in an encounter. They saw the confirmation of the sequence and the field went down, they pulled themselves out and as soon as they were back to their bodies so to speak saw the relieving sight of stars streaking through the portholes.

"Well done, we got away." the captains voice came over the speakers. Everyone clapped and patted each other on the back and made their ways to either ten forward or their quarters.

It was over finally. Wesley was so relieved he almost shouted. The Enterprise was safe once again.

* * *

The captain sat in his ready room pondering the situation. Needles to say he hadn't seen that one coming. Which was somewhat unusual to not even have a clue beforehand. He was trying to collect his thoughts for his official report to Starfleet command. There would be further inquires, such as why he had chosen to disobey a direct order. More than likely they would sanction the action and try to make it look preemptive in nature, but there was always the chance there would be a reprimand or even a court martial hearing. The captain chose not to concentrate on that now, he had done what he thought was necessary at the time. The biggest mystery was what had happened to Wesley Crusher. It was then that Q appeared as if to answer this question.

"I'm surprised at you Jean-Luc, no harsh greeting." he said in his usual smug way.

"Q, what is your interest in Wesley and the situation. It's over now so tell me." he demanded

"Oh there's the captain I know. The boy has much potential and this was just a test of it. The continuum finds him very interesting."

" So you devised this situation." he accused

"No, this wasn't worth our time to devise. We merely were interested in how it would play out, as you would say. The boy should be proud he surprised even us with his abilities."

"Then what is your interest in him does this have to do with the traveler."

"The traveler, he couldn't hold a candle to a Q, but they are way more advanced than a mere mortal. Let's just say Jean-Luc I would keep an eye on the boy he has great potential."

The End

AN: Well here it is the end. I hope you liked the story. That was a dozy final chapter. It took awhile longer than I expected to finish it. If you like stories about Wesley, then I have another one dealing with his traveler stuff called Wesley's Story. Please leave a review and tell me what you thought of the overall story.


End file.
